Doctors can face burnout risks

Medicine can be a very rewarding field to work in. It is one though that certainly has its share of struggles. Long hours, incredibly strenuous work and dealing with stressful situations are all common things for doctors. Given this, one of the things doctors can be at risk of is burnout. Some estimates indicate that over half of doctors are dealing with burnout.

Burnout can have all kinds of negative impacts on a doctor’s well-being and career. So, what can help doctors with burnout is a very important issue. A recent study looked at what kinds of burnout interventions are effective. In investigating this issue, the researchers looked at 52 past studies on doctors.

According to the study, among the effective strategies for doctors when it comes to combating burnout are:

Attending small group sessions where they can talk about burnout issues with colleagues.

Stress management training.

Mindfulness training.

This underscores that seeking out the right help and support can be important for a doctor when they are feeling burned out.

Another burnout-related situation in which it can be critical for doctors to have the right kind of help is when they are accused of not having met their professional responsibilities due to burnout. Such allegations could have all kinds of serious ramifications on a doctor’s career. The guidance of a skilled health law attorney can be a key thing for a doctor to have when trying to navigate the aftermath of these serious accusations.

The study also pointed to some of the things hospitals can do to try to help protect their physicians from burnout. Among the organizational strategies the study found to be effective were shifting the way patient care is handled and limiting duty hours for doctors. What do you think Wisconsin hospitals should be doing to try to prevent doctor burnout?